What makes Disney World so special?

[KerriKaden]

We have never been to the World, but are planning a trip for January. Just wondering what there is about Disney that makes you scrimp and save, and spend thousands of dollars to go year after year? Why is Disney different than any other theme park? I hope you guys don't take this the wrong way...I'm very excited about going!!

Thanks for any input!!

Cheryl

 

[susy]

Kerri,

Please let us help you plan. We live for this stuff!!!!!

What makes it special (especially in Jan with the low crowds and nice weather) is that it is just non-stop fun, happiness, love , all good things rolled into one!!!! It is Walt's dream- a place where the whole family can have fun TOGETHER!!

 

[crisi]

I think you'll discover Disney to be very different than any other theme park:

The themeing is extensive and consistant throughout the park. The little details really make it. When you are walking through the Africa section of the Animal Kingdom, the sidewalk is cracked and looks like its been there forever. It is done purposely to make it look like Africa. And if you really pay attention, you notice its been cracked enough to make it look really good - but not so much anyone will trip on it.

The parks aren't big on thrill rides, but almost all the rides they have (of every sort) are themed start to finish. The Disney "Splash Mountain" is like no other log ride you'll ever go on. You know when you go through the "spooky miner's tunnel" on the log ride and they have through cheesy props? Seldom are the Disney props cheesy. (There are exceptions - Rio de Tiempo comes to mind).

The logistics are amazing. It is rare that you are told that "the wait from this point is 45 minutes" to have it be any more than 45 minutes - and its usually a few minutes less. That way, you are plesantly surprised to have spent 35 minutes of your life standing in line.

OK, those are the geeky things I appreciate.

 

[ceecee]

It just is!!! Go one time and you will be convinced.

 

[DisneyBee]

When you get that WDW planning video and watch it and you think, "It seems too good to be true - it can't possibly be that magical and colorful and happy!" - and then you get there and it's all that and so, so much more - that's what makes it special!

Just go once and before you leave you'll be trying to figure out how you're going to make it back the next year!

 

[zurgswife]

Because my entire family loves every minute of every vacation and the planning in between.....It is truly a family event....

I hope you enjoy your January trip......

We are DVC (Disney Vacation Club members) and plan to go at least once if not twice ever year....

 

[beansmom]

Cheryl,

I don't know what it is either, but it just is! It's like no other 'amusement' park I've ever been to. We live about 40 miles from six flags over texas and I've been twice in 20 years...you probably don't have enough money to pay me to get me back there.

But Disneyworld....that's another story. It really is 'the happiest place on Earth'. The CM's are wonderful, always eager to help...it's just magical. Now I'm a mean old coot but when I stood at the End of Main Street two years ago and looked up at Cinderella's Castle, I cried. I will never admit this, not eve in a court of law, but I did. And I cried as we drove through the Welcome gates. Any my husband...his mother took him all over the country for vacation when he was a kid and out of all of them, WDW is his favorite. His mother is very ill and thinks she will die within a few years and said last week how she will die happy if she can go back to DW once more. It's amazing.

Do let these great people here teach you the ropes...it will be invaluable and make planning the trip a joy, not a chore. They will tell you things that the guidebooks have no mention of (like beaver tails, the lights in the sidewalk at Epcot, Tinkerbelle's flight, etc) and it will make your trip so much more memorable.

Welcome to the DIS!

 

[beansmom]

Also, if you have the Travel Channel, check the schedule for the Animal Kingdom show which will be on later this month (travelchannel.com)---it's a great show---and the one about Disney Imagineers (don't know when that will be reshown)--they will fire you up!

 

[maggie767]

when i went to disney world for the first time i cried when i saw the castle. it is another world there. all your troubles are gone while at disney. you are like a kid again. (i'm 60) we are going again next year and cannot wait to see my daughters faceand granddaughters as they have never been there. i have talked them into going with us, they are saving every penny they can and we are going in october, i know thats a long way off, but it is so much fun just planning the trip. that time will roll around real fast. can't wait to go. go and have a wonderful time . have a safe trip and god bless you.

 

[iluvtig2]

Pure magic!

iluvtig

 

[tonilea]

It is impossible to explain. And it doesn't happen to everyone. When I first "discovered" the DisBoards, I could not believe the people who had made multiple Disney Trips, some even several times a year! I laughed and showed my DH. We could not imagine some one spending all their vacation time in the same location!

As I write this, I am planning our THIRD TRIP THIS YEAR! So, I guess the joke is on me! I love it!

 

[poohsdoodle]

KeriKaden

I had the same feeling as you, "what's so special"?

I never had the urge to go, and when a chance "fell into my lap", I headed south.

Five days at the parks, from open to closing most days were long, hot, & draining.... but I can't wait until March '03 when I can do it again!!!!!!

I can't afford to do several trips a year, but I will try for every other year, I just can't force myself to give up my yearly beach trip.

The phrase cannot be over used, but it truly is MAGICAL. I can only ask you share your thoughts upon your return!

Have an AWESOME time.

 

[mom2smjn]

My Dh swears that is true
we have tried several vacations and hae liked them but then we took the kids to WDW and we are SOOOOOOOO hooked! Our realitives(none of whom have ever been) think we are insane!

My Dh who is not ig on crowds,lines or spending big bucks absolutley adores disney. He claims it is THE only time that he completely forgets about work,he doesn't mind lines, and he feels stressfree 24/7. The staff and people in the parks are so relaxed and cheerful and helpful...Dh and I swear that you will find no other place where people do NOT push and shove, that they do NOT complain and gripe about anything! It is so MAGICAL!
Also I think they have it so EVERY member of your family has fun and noone is left out young,old,handicapped, or anything.
We have been trying to convince my parents to make the trip with us.....and they have agreed to go December 2003!!!!!!!! I am so excited!
My dad is such a kid at heart I think he will love it! And I know my mom will too!

 

[emmagata]

Originally posted by KerriKaden
We have never been to the World, but are planning a trip for January. Just wondering what there is about Disney that makes you scrimp and save, and spend thousands of dollars to go year after year? Why is Disney different than any other theme park? I hope you guys don't take this the wrong way...I'm very excited about going!!

Thanks for any input!!

Cheryl

The Mickey bars, of course!!!!

 

[Pumbaa_]

I made my first trip in 1998 at the 'old' age of 33. I never knew what I was missing! It is the only vacation place that leaves all the stresses of the world behind and you just have fun! It is a safe, clean, magical place. I am now planning my 8th, 9th, and 10th trips (all in the next 5 months!!) Nuts? You bet! But it is the only vacation destination for me. It is worth all the sacrifices we make during hte year for our trips.

 

[tonilea]

I have been thinking about this, and I have decided that if any of us could really explain the "Magic of Disney"..... we would have come up with a really good answer, so our families and friends wouldn't all think we are NUTS!

 

[hegfam]

My two cents worth is this: If this is your first time to Disney, do as much as you can and stay as long as you can. Although we dream of Disney year-round and look forward to our trips months in advance, there was nothing ever so special as seeing this place for the very first time. And to watch your children experience it for the first time. It does evoke emotion.

And I second the Mickey ice-cream bars! Can't wait to get my hands on one!

 

[mm6mm6]

I was in the exact same boat as you (what seat were you in?) until we went this past June. The greatest thing for me and my wife was the joy it brought to our little 5 year old daughter. She has all the Disney videos. She watches Playhouse Disney on the Disney channel and would ask if she could see Playhouse Disney Live on Stage at DisneyWorld when we went. Getting there and seeing her utter joy with the characters and with seeing that show was unreal. Every kid in the Live On Stage show sang along with the tunes they know from the shows. My sister doesn't let her child watch tv (shows or videos...she's nuts, I know) and a trip to Disney would be partially wasted on her son. The cleanliness, the hospitality, the organisation........the MAGIC!

 

[emmagata]

Originally posted by hegfam

And I second the Mickey ice-cream bars! Can't wait to get my hands on one!

Just one?????

I usually have about 3 a day!!!
(That's why I come back with extra "baggage"!)

 

[tink2dw]

Carmel lovers go for the Goofy Bars!!

I never went to Disney when I was a kid,we went to the cheapo places,like Storybook Land they had plastic keys that started the story that went with the static story scenes,but by the 3rd scene the keys broke,a grumpy owner claimed it was our fault,but my Dad ask hiim to try it and His key broke too!! that was the best part!!

When I took my Daughter to WDW the first time,she was four too little to go on Dumbo alone Imagine my suprize that a "kiddie ride" was big enough to have adults accompany their children on the ride. That's the first time I experienced Disney Magic!!

Second time was that this severly Motion sick person could ride Disney Rides with very little trouble. Since I found Meclizine 25mg I can ride ALL the WDW rides even Rockin'Roller Coaster ,TOT,and Space Mountain!! To me thats Magic!!